Almost 60 jobs to go at navanbased company
Almost 60 jobs look set to be lost in Navan following a strategic review at a local company.
The loss of up to 57 jobs at the Collinson Group (formerly Europ Assistance) at the IDA Business Park in Navan was described a major blow to long-serving workers in the company and to Navan.
The Collinson Group has been in the IDA Business Park Navan for close to 20 years and specialises in being a service provider to some of the largest insurance and other companies worldwide. Clients include MasterCard, Paypal, VHI Nurseline and VHI travel and global claims, Liberty Insurance plus a number of other agencies.
Local Sinn Fein councillor Joe Reilly said he had been informed that between 55 and 60 workers will be made redundant, some of whom have worked over 15 years for the company. 'They are only being offered statuary redundancy, two weeks per year of service. This is unacceptable that workers who have shown such commitment to the company should be treated in a such a measly manner,' he said.
He has asked for an urgent meeting with Jobs & Enterprise Minister Richard Bruton, the IDA and Enterprise Ireland and the company to see if jobs can be saved.
In a statement, the London-headquartered Collinson Group said: “Following the acquisition of Aria Assistance in 2013, we have undertaken a strategic review of our insurance and assistance business, including our customer operations.
'It has been decided that in order for us to increase our business efficiency whilst maintaining and building on our excellent customer service, it was vital for us to introduce a more streamlined approach across all of our contact centre operations.'
It said its contact centre in Navan will now become a centre of excellence for triage, medical, travel, personal accident and dental claims.
“As part of the operational changes, 57 roles have been identified as being at risk of redundancy at our Navan contact centre. We have begun a period of consultation with all employees affected during which time we will provide all with support and help,” said David Evans, managing director of the Collinson Group's Insurance & Assistance business unit.